Helen Georgia!

Hello everyone! Last weekend, I went down to Helen Georgia for some racing. This race was part of the Georgia state series, but it was also a SERC makeup race, and I needed it for my final SERC standing points. The weekend started out with the rather long drive on all two lane roads. It seems there was just not really a good route to get to this place! Once we finally made it though, it was a BEAUTIFUL place! There were hills around, and it was just really pretty.

We made it there in time to get in a pre ride which was REALLY important on this course. It was a fairly challenging one! I had soooo much fun riding these trails. Once I went down the first downhill, I was thinking, "man are these trails awesome!" I was really excited for the race the next morning! After the preride, my two friends and I found a camp site in the extremely crowded camp ground at Unicoi State Park where the race was. I am pretty sure we got THE LAST spot in the entire camp ground. We were very happy to have found it! After getting camp all set up, we had a yummy dinner of tuna and rice burritos, and then hit the hay for the day of racing ahead!

In the morning we woke up and I was ready to race! We got to the course, and I started my warm up, and my legs were feeling pretty good. I was totally looking forward to a long day on some awesome trails.

Race time came quickly as always, and I found myslef on the line about to start. We lined up ten girls. A pretty good field! I had a pretty good start and went into the woods in third. By the end of things I ended up in fifth. I was pretty pleased with myself! I tried my hardest, and I felt like I had clean and steady race. That is what I always aim for, and of course I had FUN! Racing is fun, and that is why we do it!

My bike worked great thanks to the new bottom bracket bearings that the guys at the Trek Store helped me get a hold of. Thanks guys! And thank you soooo sooo much to US Stove and all of our other sponsors for helping us go to these races. We love it!

SERC Race in Huntsville!

This last weekend, I had a really fun time getting to go down to Huntsville for the second to last SERC race. I went down with a few friends from here in Knoxville. It was fun to ride down with them, but I did miss my team mates too! My people and I got down there on Saturday night and had a fun time camping before the race. I made a lot of macaroni and cheese, so that was really yummy to eat for dinner, and there was sooo much. It was awesome. Anyways, with a full stomach, I went to bed to get up early for the 930 start in the morning.

Time to get up came early. I wanted to keep sleeping. haha. But, after I got some food and coffee in me, I was getting excited to race! I hadn't gotten to pre ride the course, so I was slightly nervous about that. I have ridden here before though, so I had some idea of what was coming up. Monte Sano, the park we were at, is a ROUGH PLACE! Those trails are no joke! They are really fun, but if you are not on your toes in some of the really rocky sections, you could really have a pretty nasty fall. I kept this in mind and made it through the race with the rubber side down! I always aim for that.

So, my race went pretty well. I felt like I was trying my hardest, and that's what I always go out to do. My other team mates did really great too! Good job to all of them! So, this was a really fun weekend. It is always a good opprotunity to get to ride some trails that push you a little bit technically. It helps keep you humble.

Thanks to all of our sponsors like US Stove and the Trek store for making this possible for us! We love racing our bikes, and we are so thankful that we have people like yall who will help us do it! And, we also really like how the guys at the Trek Store keep our bikes running. I know I present them with a bit of a challenge at times, but they are patient with me, and all your work is greatly appreciated by me! Thanks again from everyone.

Love, Emily